Hallo Goodbye
by majobloem
Summary: The story happens right after season 3. Emma and Bella meet, will they get along? Cleo is happy to see Lewis again and what is wrong with Rikki? And what happens with Ryan, Sophie and Zane? First FF, so please be nice. Rated T for character death
1. Chapter 1

_English is not my first language, so__ please don't be mad if there are errors in my text. This is my first story; (negative and positive) reviews are always welcome, but please be polite. I don't own H2O or any of its characters. If I did, there'd be a fourth season. Love H2O.  
The story takes place right after the end of season 3, so there could be spoilers in it from the series._

_There __is a little part of the first chapter written from a POV of a character. This character is a mysterious girl, whose identity will be revealed in the 2__nd__ chapter._

**Summary: sort of 4****th**** season: Emma and Bella meet, will they get along? Cleo is happy to see Lewis again and what is wrong with Rikki? And what happens with Ryan, Sophie and Zane?**

"Good morning everyone. My name is Vincent O'Brian and you're listening to _Radio GC_. It's nine o'clock and the sun is shining. And we're gonna start this beautiful morning with _No Ordinary Girl_ from Kate Alexa."  
Cleo opened her eyes and yawned. It was a Wednesday morning during Summer Holiday. Graduation was about 3 weeks ago and it was today Lewis would come back for the US.

While Cleo's radio was still singing about mermaids in the ocean, Cleo stood up and got dressed. She looked disappointed at her cell. Lewis still hadn't texted her, which he'd promised her to do right when his plane had landed.

"Cleo, you've got visit!" Don yelled. When Cleo came downstairs she couldn't believe her eyes. "Surprise" he said, opening his arms to her for a hug. Cleo ran into Lewis' arms and squeezed him.  
"Wow, it's only been 3 weeks since I left."  
"For the second time!" Cleo said. "So, how was your flight?"

Two days later, Bella came home from her holidays. She had spent 2 weeks with her grandmother who lived in Wales, UK. Right after her homecoming she went to see Will. When she knocked on his door, there was a female voice that said: "Come in."  
Bella entered and saw Sophie, sitting at the table, being busy with blue stones. Sophie turned around and smiled. "Don't you recognize this?" she asked, showing Bella a blue stone, similar to the stone of Bella's necklace.  
"Where did you get that?" Bella wandered.  
"Mako Island. These stones are worth a billion. It's only sadly that Ryan quit. But Zane is happy with the stones: after I've sold them all, we share in the profit and then the café can pay its debt."  
Bella couldn't believe what she just heard: right before she left to Wales, Rikki had insured her that Zane would keep their mermaid-thing a secret. And now, she hears that he's going to exploit their magic for saving his café, that one he first wanted to give to Rikki. She decided to avoid further discussion with Sophie and asked: "By the way, where's Will? I came to see him."  
"He went off, diving."  
"But now I'm back. Hi babe." Will smiled at Bella.  
"Missed me?"She asked him when they hugged.  
"Yeah, a little. But there's something I need you to talk about. Sophie?" Will looked at his sister. She nodded and said: "Okay, I'm already leaving. My shift at the café starts right away, so if you need me, you know where to find me."  
"Is it Zane you wanna talk to me about? Did something happen?" Bella asked worried.  
"No, I've seen something that wasn't really normal."  
"And what would that be?"  
"A mermaid with long blonde hair, she looked a bit like you, but it wasn't you or Rikki."  
"You've seen another mermaid?"  
"Yes." Will nodded.

When I walked into the café, it was totally different. I ordered a Banana Beatbox, but the waitress looked at me like I came from another planet.  
"The Banana Beatbox has been deleted of the menu for almost a year. Who are you, anyway? I haven't seen you before." She said to me.  
"I've been away for a while. But I'm afraid I have to go. See ya!" I stood up and when I was heading for the exit I saw a familiar face. But why was Zane behind the bar?

Rikki was walking down the beach. Her favorite spot to be. Here she could let everything go and dream away. She could let take her away to wonderful places she'd been before, away to beautiful times that won't ever come back.  
She was thinking about those times with that one person she hadn't seen for more than 7 years now, and she started realizing she would soon see that face again. She wanted to see that person again, only not in these circumstances. She wanted to-  
"Rikki! Thank God, here you are!"  
Rikki's thoughts were interrupted. When she looked up, she saw Bella and Will.  
"Hey Bella, good to see you again." Rikki smiled. "Hi Will" She added quickly.  
"Rikki, there's an emergency. Will thinks he saw another mermaid nearby Mako. I mean, is that possible? Is it possible that there are others out somewhere? Others like us?"  
"I guess. A year ago, me, Cleo or Emma didn't know either that there were other pools like the one on Mako. It could be that there are others out somewhere." Rikki suggested.  
"Wait, who's Emma?" Will asked.  
"Emma was a friend of mine and Cleo's. She turned with us into a mermaid. She left the Gold Coast right before you two came here." Rikki answered.  
"Maybe it was her. Maybe she is the mermaid that was swimming around Mako."  
"I don't think so. Em would let me or Cleo know, if she'd come back."

After their talk on the beach, Will, Bella and Rikki went to the café. When Zane saw them enter, she walked right to them and said to Rikki he needed to talk to her. Rikki rolled her eyes, but after a little bagging of Zane, she went with him to the office. Sophie saw them together. He eyes only said one thing: jealousy.


	2. Chapter 2

"What do you want, Zane?" Rikki asked her ex-boyfriend.  
"Emma was here earlier today. I don't know if she saw me, because Sophie took her order."  
"What? Is Em back, without telling us anything?" Rikki couldn't believe her ears. "I'm gonna call Lewis and Cleo, maybe they heard something of her." Rikki took her cell when she was leaving the room. She turned around and said "Thanks Zane. I knew we still could be friends."

After Rikki had called Cleo, the brunette dialed Emma's number on her cell. "Hello, Emma Gilbert is out of reach for the moment. You can leave a message -"Cleo sighed. Why wasn't Emma answering? She always answered when Cleo called her the last year. Even if it was in the middle of the night for her. She decided to call Lewis.  
"Hi my love." He answered the phone.  
"Lewis, did you hear something from Emma. Rikki told me that she might be back, but I tried to call her and she isn't answering?" Cleo rambled.  
"Oh, calm down, stop rambling, please Cleo. No, I haven't heard from her for at least 2 months. Rikki already called me too. But maybe Zane was wrong, maybe it was just a girl who looked like Emma."  
"Lewis, do you still believe in fairy tales?" Cleo asked annoyed.  
"Until 3 years ago, I didn't believe in mermaids either. So I think there's a good chance that there exists a lot more than we think." Lewis answered.  
"Well, I think there's a good chance that Emma's back. Without telling us first." Cleo spoke furious and hung up.

"Rikki, are you here?"  
Terry Chadwick went outside when he heard a voice. When he recognized the face of his visitor he said "Well well well, look who we have here. Rikki didn't tell me you were coming back."  
"She doesn't know yet I'm back. My phone has been stolen a few days ago, so I couldn't reach Rikki or Cleo. Do you know where she is? Is she here maybe?"  
"No, she went to the beach this morning, but I haven't seen her since." Terry said.  
"Okay, thank you Mr. Chadwick!"  
"No problem. Bye Emma." He waved at her when the old friend of his daughter left.

Emma decided to go to the beach, but there she couldn't find anyone familiar. So she decided to go to Mako. When she arrived at the Moon Pool, she was surprised: the cave was totally destroyed. How was this possible? Neither Rikki nor Cleo had told her. She went out of the pool and waited until her legs reappeared. She stood up and walked to the other entrance of the cave. But she couldn't find Rikki, Cleo or Lewis. She went back to the Moon Pool and dove into the water, but at that moment she heard unfamiliar voices at the other entrance of the cave. She wanted to swim away, but right at the moment she went under water, a girl and a boy she didn't know, appeared.  
Emma shocked. Who were they and what were they doing here? What was she going to do now they saw her like this, with a tail?  
"You must be Emma, right?" the boy asked. "Nice to me you. I'm Will and this is Bella. Don't worry, your secret's save with us. We know Rikki and Cleo too."  
Emma was still in shock. This was quiet a lot of information to swallow in one time. After a short silence, she realized that the strange boy and girl were still waiting for an answer. "Yes, I'm Emma." She admitted.  
"Rikki and Cleo will be pleased see you again." Will said.  
While Emma came out of the water and waited for her tail to dry, Will talked to Emma the whole time. He told her about how he found out the girls' secret; about that Bella was a mermaid too, about the comet they'd fight off, and about the latest problems with Sophie.  
Emma was surprised by how much everything had changed last year. How was it possible that they hadn't told her any of this? She could only hope that her friends weren't changed to much either.

Bella hadn't said a word the entire time. She just had listened to the stories of Will and to what Emma all said and asked him. She knew already for quiet a time that Emma existed and that she was a mermaid too. But to be confronted with her (unannounced) had totally overwhelmed her. She didn't know if she had to be glad with this new development or not. The advantages were that there was now one mermaid more to fight against Sophie's plans to exploit the Moon Pool and that Rikki and Cleo would be very happy to see their old friend back. But that last thing was also the disadvantage: would they still be her friend too? Bella wandered, but only time would tell.  
Also Emma was wandering about these things: would she still be welcome again in the group or not? Would they still care about her? But she also thought: maybe I should give Bella a chance and ask her something?  
"It's a nice blue stone you've got there. Where does is come from?"  
"I found it in the sea cave where I first became a mermaid. I and my family were living in Ireland at the time and there were these cliffs which I was drowned to. Then there was a full moon that night and I think you can imagine the rest of the story yourself. By the way, Cleo and Rikki were the same stones around their necks." Bella answered.  
But what she didn't realize was what the last sentence had done to Emma. When Bella told her this, she totally knew the others were forgotten her, she knew their friendship didn't mean so much to them as it did to her.  
Both girls tried to smile at each other, but after an awkward silence Will suggested, that it was maybe better that they went back, so Emma could see Rikki and Cleo again.

Cleo couldn't believe her eyes: it was Emma after all. So Zane and Will had been right all the time. "Why didn't you tell us you were back?" was the only thing she could say.  
"It's nice to see you too, Cleo." Emma smiled.  
"Sorry. But why didn't you tell us?" Cleo replied.  
"My phone's been stolen, I couldn't reach you."  
"Well whatever, it's nice you're here again." Rikki said and hugged her friend. The three original mermaids walked off to catch up with each other. Bella felt her left alone.


	3. Chapter 3

When Rikki came home that night, she found her dad sitting at the table. She saw the paper he was holding. How did he find that? She knew she couldn't lie about it any longer to him, so she started talking. "I'm sorry, I wanted to tell you but it never seemed the right time."  
"How long do you already know this, anyway?" he asked her disappointed.  
"A while" Rikki answered shyly.  
"I thought you knew you could tell me anything. I want to be there for you Rikki, help you if you need. But I can only do that if you talk to me when something's wrong. I'm not angry or anything, I'm just a little disappointed because you didn't tell me. And worried, because you had to bag this burden alone. Did you tell anyone about this?"  
"No, I didn't want to worry anyone. Particularly not you, you're the most important person in my life. You know me, dad. You know that I didn't mean to harm you with not telling you this."  
"I know, sweetie." Terry stood up, walked towards his daughter and hugged her. Rikki hugged him back.  
For a long time, they were standing there like that. Until Rikki started to cry and said she went to bed early. Terry could only nod and worry in silence about his little girl who had grown up too fast.

A few weeks passed. The girls laughed a lot with each other, there were swims, they talked and caught up with each other. But there was still that silent tension between Emma and Bella. Even Cleo and Rikki felt that the other two mermaids had issues. But as long that there wasn't a real fight, they weren't really concerned about the situation. They thought it would turn out all right; it would only be a matter of time.  
Emma got to know Sophie better and disliked her too. Sophie sold all of her blue stones and made a lot of money. She took off with her money, leaving Will, Zane and her job at the café behind. They were released of her and the problems she'd brought with her. Zane used his part of the profit to pay the café's debt and stayed a keeper of the girls' secret and their friend.  
Another thing they had accomplished was the clean-up of the cave at Mako.

One morning, Emma was out of bed early and went for a jog. She found Lewis fishing at his usual spot. "Hi there!" she said, happy to see her friend.  
"Hi there to you too." He answered. "Cleo called me last night. She could not stop talking about how happy she is that you're back."  
"Do you really think she's happy I'm back? And Rikki too?" Emma asked unsure.  
"Why wouldn't they be happy?" Lewis acted surprise.  
"Well, they didn't tell me about this Bella or Will. They wear the same necklace as her, instead of our silver necklaces. And they didn't tell me about that comet. And I can think of a lot of other reasons."  
Lewis didn't really know what to answer. Emma had a point, it was something he actually never really thought about, none of them ever did. After a short silence he asked: "Don't you think Bella feels the same way like you do?"  
"Why would she? She's the one that took my place in our old group." Emma reacted surprised. Why would Lewis even think something like that?  
"Maybe she's just as scared as you are. Maybe she fears of loosing Rikki and Cleo. Maybe she's scared that they will pick you now, instead of her?"  
Emma hadn't thought of it that way before. Maybe she should go to the girls and have a decent talk about this with them. "Maybe you're right. I've got to admit: I haven't thought of it that way before. I've got to go Lewis. I'll catch you later." And Emma ran off.

Later that day, also Bella was troubling with her emotions. She needed a talk and headed over to Will's place. "Hi, can we talk?" she asked when Will opened the door.  
"Sure, come in. What's up?" he kissed her.  
"I don't know what to do anymore. I feel lost, ever since Emma was back."  
"Why? I think she's nice."  
"I know, she seems nice to me too. But what if she tries to take Cleo and Rikki away from me? Or what if after a while Cleo and Rikki like her more, than they like me?" Bella suggested worried.  
"First, I don't think Emma would do that, neither would Cleo or Rikki. And have you already tried to talk to Emma about this?"  
"No, not really." Bella admitted.  
"Sorry Bella, but I have to go. Lewis wanted to see me and I'd meet him in half an hour. I'm really sorry, but maybe you should first to talk about this, with the others girls. I'll see you later?"  
"I guess." Bella answered. And when Will left, she felt left alone, again.


	4. Chapter 4

After his meeting with Lewis, Will called Bella again.  
Will: "Hi Bella, do you wanna continue our talk of earlier?"  
Bella: "Yeah, sure. Why not? When and where you wanna meet?"  
Will: "7 tonight, Moon Pool. Okay?"  
Bella: "Okay, fine by me. See you then. Love ya."  
Will: "Love ya too." And he hung up and smiled.

What Bella didn't know was that Lewis had called Emma. They'd also meet at 7 at the Moon Pool.  
When she arrived there, both of the guys were there. She was surprised to see Lewis. "Hi Will. Hi Lewis. What are you doing here?"  
"Making sure you don't leave." Will answered.  
"Why would I leave?" Bella asked.  
At that moment Emma entered the Moon Pool. Lewis pointed at her and said. "Because she's coming too."  
Emma came out of the water and was as surprised as Bella was. "What are you guys up to?" They both asked at the same time.  
"You two have issues to work through. You both have problems with the presence of each other and you're both afraid of losing Rikki and Cleo to the other. Tell me if I'm wrong, then you both can go if you want." Lewis said. The girls looked embarrassed at each other. After Lewis noticed this, he continued: "We know, you both want to talk to the other about this, but you're both afraid to take the first step. So we've taken the first step for you. The rest is up to you. We hope you can talk about this now. We're leaving."  
The boys said goodbye to girls and left. After a silence, Bella turned to the Moon Pool and wanted to jump in. But before she got the chance, Emma took her arm and said: "Don't you think the guys are right? Don't you think it's time that we finally talk instead of keeping running from our emotions and avoiding each other?"  
"Maybe." Bella admitted. "I think we could get along, but I'm afraid you'd abuse my trust and take Cleo and Rikki away from me."  
"And why on Earth would I do something like that?"  
"Don't know. It's just, now I finally made friends of which I've got nothing to hide, I don't want to lose them."  
"And what if you could have one more friend of which you don't have to hide you're secret?"  
"Like who?"  
"Someone like me." Emma said. "Maybe it's time we forget our doubts about each other and start over, trying to be friends. I want to give it a try, anyway."  
"Okay, why not. So… Friends?" Bella stretched her hand and Emma took it.  
"Friends." Emma confirmed happily. Emma walked to the wall of the Moon Pool. She took a blue stone out of it and put it in her pocket. "I can ask Will if wants to make this one, likes yours." She took off her silver necklace and put into her other pocket. "I think it's time for a new necklace now there are new friendships."  
They smiled, dove into the water and went for a swim together.

Afterwards, they went to Will's shed. There they found Will and Lewis talking.  
"So you two are okay now?" Lewis asked.  
The girls nodded. Emma took the blue stone out of her pocket. "Will, could you make me necklace just like you did for Rikki and Cleo?"  
Will took the crystal and nodded. Lewis looked amazed at Emma. She saw this and said "New friendships ask for new symbols. By the way, where are Rikki and Cleo?"  
Lewis smiled "I made sure they went to the theatre together, so they wouldn't interrupt your talk with Bella."  
They all smiled. _He's always been the smart one of the group_.  
"But I've texted Cleo that they had to come over here after the movie. So if you want, you can wait here."  
The girls agreed.

They all had a good time for next hour. They chatted and laughed. Until Lewis' phone rang: _Cleo_ said the screen.  
Lewis: "Hi Cleo. How was the movie?"  
Cleo: "The movie was good, but we've got bigger issues now."  
Lewis: "What do you mean? Something happened?"  
Cleo: "It's Rikki. She had a breakdown. So we went immediately to the hospital. When he arrived there, I called Mr. Chadwick and what he told me was devastating." Cleo had to fight her tears.  
Lewis: "Cleo, speak please. What did he say?"  
Tuuuuut… was the next thing Lewis heard. He tried to recall Cleo, but only got her voice mail. "Her battery must have died." He said to the others. "There's something wrong with Rikki, we've got to hurry to the hospital."  
They were all worried about their friend and rushed to the hospital


	5. Chapter 5

"Why haven't you told us this earlier?" Emma asked to Rikki.  
"I didn't want to worry any of you. You and Bella had your own fight going on and Cleo and Lewis seemed way too happy with each other. I just couldn't break their happiness." Rikki answered. "I'm sorry guys, I really am."  
"I've been worried sick when you had that breakdown at the theatre. I didn't know what to do." Cleo said.  
"There's nothing you can do. Leukemia is an unbeatable disease." Rikki started talking. "After my parents divorced (that's been more than 7 years now), my mother complaint she didn't feel right: a few months later she was diagnosed with it. That is how she died 6 months later. 4 years ago I was diagnosed with it. 11 months later the doctor said I was officially in remission, so I thought I had beaten it off. A few months later we moved to the Gold Coast. I had to go every 6 months to the hospital for a check-up and 2 months ago my oncologist told me that the cancer was back, worse than he had ever been."  
"She even didn't tell me it was back." Terry said when he came into the hospital room. "I found out the day Emma came back." He hugged his daughter and asked her friends if they could come back tomorrow, since Rikki had to rust. Her friends said goodbye and left.  
"What is it you wanna talk about, dad?"  
"Why do you think there's something I want to talk about?"  
"I think I can tell after all those years. So spill it!" Rikki answered her dad.  
"The doctor of the emergency department has contacted your oncologist. They've discussed your situation and they have told me…" Terry had to fight his tears. Rikki knew enough with this.  
"How long, dad?" she asked. Terry didn't answer so Rikki repeated her question, but more severe. She just had to know.  
" 4 weeks, maximum."  
"Is my situation that serious?" Rikki couldn't believe it. Now her fight was definitely over. "Dad, can you promise me one thing?"  
"Whatever you want, love."  
"Don't tell any of my friends."  
"Why not?" Terry asked.  
"If they know, they'll only be worrying about me. I just want to enjoy the time I have left, without them always telling me I have to be careful or anything. Please dad, promise me. Something as a last wish-thing."  
"Okay Rikki, I won't tell them." Terry promised.  
"Thanks dad." Rikki smiled and hugged her father.

2 days later Rikki could go home. She was happy she could leave the hospital. She had had a long talk with her dad. They had made an agreement. Rikki could die home in peace, she was not going to take any medication, he wouldn't tell any of her friends and the days she'd feel okay, she still could go to see her friends (and go swimming with them, but she didn't tell him that.)  
Rikki was glad that her father agreed with all of this. She just wanted to have a nice time as long as she could.

Days passed. Sometimes she felt okay, other times she stayed home, while the others were out swimming. They understood if she didn't go with them. They understood that she didn't want them to feel sorry for her, so they didn't. There was empathy when she needed some and none when she didn't. It felt right to her. She was satisfied about her life and friends; she had leaded a good life.

Bella, Will, Cleo, Emma and Lewis felt like Rikki was hiding something from them. They were talking about it at the café and Zane overheard their conversation. He interrupted their talk. "What do you mean? Is Rikki sick again?"  
They all looked at each other. Emma asked: "What do you mean with 'again'? You knew she's been sick in the past?"  
Zane nodded. "She told me once when we were still together. She told me that if the cancer came back, she probably wouldn't survive it. That's why I ask you now: did the cancer come back?"  
"Yes, it did."  
"Maybe that's the thing Rikki's hiding." Lewis spoke. "Maybe she doesn't want to worry us, like she did the other time."  
"If that's the case, we've got to something." Cleo suggested.  
"I'm gonna go see Mr. Chadwick. He must know if Rikki's dying or not." Emma said.  
The others agreed.

Emma knew that today Rikki had an appointment at the hospital, so this was the right moment to go to Mr. Chadwick. He was pleased to see Emma.  
"Mr. Chadwick, I'm just gonna ask this straight away: Is there a chance Rikki survives this or not?"  
"Actually I can't tell you, Emma. I promised Rikki not to. I'm sorry." Terry answered.  
Emma knew enough. "Thank you, Mr. Chadwick, to be honest with me."  
Sadly she left the trailer and headed back to the others who were still waiting at the café. They were devastated when Emma told them the truth. There had to be something they could do. And then Cleo had an idea.


	6. Chapter 6

_Thank you all for reading the story this far. Hope you still enjoy it. Reviews are welcome.  
Also thank you to _WALIXELA _to be my first reviewer.  
This chapter is written from __**Rikki's POV**__._

It has been 3 weeks now since I've left the hospital (Chapter 5). If the doctors are right, it shouldn't be that long anymore for me to die. I don't really know if I want to die or not. I want to see my mother again and I want my suffering to stop. But when my physical suffering stops, my dad and my friends will start to suffer mentally. They've all been so kind and understandable lately, that I don't when them to mourn about me. Their burden to bag had already been heavy enough, I think.

This morning, when I stood up, my dad had made a delicious breakfast for me. But unfortunately, my stomach didn't like it as much as I did and I threw it all up. This would be a day of misery and pain.  
My dad told me it was nothing and cleaned the whole mess up. I stayed in bed until there was a knock on the door. My dad was at that moment at the grocery shop, so I had to open the door.  
What I saw when I opened the door, was a nice surprise: all my close friends were standing there, including Zane. They said I had to come with them. So I took my coat and left a note for my dad.  
They lifted me into the Zodiac (Zane's boat), along with Will, Lewis and Zane. We went to the open sea, to Mako. (Of course, to Mako. Where else would they take me?) The girls swam next to the boat. I was sitting in the boat, since I was too weak to swim all the way to Mako.

When we arrived there, the boys had carried (!) me all the way to the cave. I have no idea why they did so much effort for me, but for once I actually enjoyed being sick, I enjoyed for once being treated like a queen. :-D When we entered the cave, it was amazing! They had decorated the entire place.  
"We know you're terribly sick and you're probably gonna leave us soon and we don't want you to leave without saying goodbye, so we're having today a sort of 'goodbye-Rikki'-party." Bella said.

Normally I can control my emotions, but this time I just couldn't. I couldn't believe that they have done this especially for me. The tears were rolling down my cheeks and I couldn't stop them. I started crying hysterically and stammered: "I'm so sorry guys, I haven't told you sooner but I've got a confession to make. When I was in the hospital the doctors gave me only 4 week tops to live. So probably I'll be leaving sooner than you all first thought."  
"It's okay, Rikki, we understand." Emma comforted me. At that moment, I knew they'd be all right after I leave.

I had a great time, that evening. It was a really good 'goodbye-Rikki'-party. When it became dark in the cave, I started a fire (with my power). I got cold, even with my coat, so Zane gave me his sweater. I leaned on to him. "I'm sorry for everything I've put you through the last couple of months. The break-up and all. I'm sorry, Zane."  
"You don't need to apologize. I was the one that made the mistake of not putting you as priority number one. I should apologize." He answered.  
Oh my god, how sweet was that? Could anyone, please, tell me why I've let this amazing guy go?  
"Know all that I'll miss you up there. You all and our mermaid-secret are the best thing that ever happened to me. This has made my life worth living. I love you all. Please tell my father that I love him too." I said quietly while I felt my body weakening by the second.  
"No Rikki, no goodbyes. Not yet." Cleo cried.  
"Goodbye guys." I said, followed by my last sigh.

This had been truly the most amazing three years of my short, but good life.

AN: I know it's kinda fluffy with Zane, but I wanted to give this lovely couple a nice goodbye. I haven't brought them together again, because I also wanted to stay loyal to their characters.


	7. Chapter 7

"No! Please Rikki wake up! Open your eyes and say this was just some stupid joke." Zane shook Rikki. But she didn't open her eyes.  
"Zane, it's over. She is… you know… death." Lewis said quietly, trying to comfort Zane.  
Cleo ran towards Lewis and started crying in his arms. Lewis tried to comfort her with his whispering, but her waterfall of tears kept coming. Bella sat quietly in Will's arm, staring to nothing.  
It was quiet in the cave. Nobody dared to move or say anything.

A few hours later they took Rikki's body back to the mainland, they brought to her father. He started crying when he saw her. He even didn't get the chance to say goodbye, but he was also glad in some way that Rikki didn't die alone. That she was surrounded by people she loved and that loved her.

A week later, there was the funeral. It was at the beach. Terry told it was Rikki's wish that her ashes would be scattered into the ocean. When Lewis opened the urn and the ashes were scattered, Bella read a little text in name of the entire group.  
"Rikki, when we first met, you said to me: _there is no such thing as magic_, but that's not true. You were magic to me. The way you took care of people was magic: you never wanted any help yourself, but were always the first to help another. You helped and saved me in more than one way. You saved all of us in one way or another.  
And how stubborn, ironic or angry you could be, you were still a true friend. Because every action you did, every word you said, every emotion you felt…" Bella stopped reading and sniffed. She took her handkerchief and wiped away her tears.  
"I'm sorry." She apologized like she had committed a serious crime, but quickly continued. "Because every action you did, every word you said, every emotion you felt,… you did, said or felt with your heart and your soul. You meant it all and that is what true friends do.  
You said once you felt free when you were at our special spot. Now you're free forever. We can only hope you're happy up there. Take care Rikki. We'll miss you, my friend. Every day."

Afterwards Terry went to Bella. "That was a beautiful farewell. Thank you for doing this, all of you." he said, while he also looked at the others. They nodded.  
"What are you going to do now?" Emma asked.  
"I don't know." Terry answered. "Since there's nothing to keep me here anymore, I think I'm gonna travel. It has always been Rikki's dream to travel and see the world. So I think I'm gonna live her dream. It the last thing I can do for her." He smiled when he remembered something. "Last year she said she had found the perfect way of travelling, but she has never told me, what way that was. But I guess I'll never know what that was." He tried to smile.  
But the girls did smile when they heard this, they had a pretty good idea of what that way of travelling might be.

That evening, Emma, Cleo and Bella were sitting in Cleo's bedroom. Sam had brought them some food and drinks and promised them that she'd keep Kim and Don away so the girls had some privacy.  
At a certain moment Emma started talking. "You know, I've been thinking about what Mr. Chadwick said. Cleo, do you remember our first days of being a mermaid?"  
Cleo nodded. "Yeah, why?"  
"While we were worrying about the consequences of our transformation, Rikki was thinking about the possibilities. _We could swim all the way to Fiji_, she said back then. Maybe we can do the same thing as Mr. Chadwick. Maybe we can also leave a little part of her dream and go to Fiji, but not by plane. We should go how Rikki would have went, by swimming. What do you think?"  
Bella smiled immediately. "I think it's a great idea. I think it's a good way of saying goodbye to Rikki."  
Cleo nodded also. The girls went to bed and woke up early the next day.

They knew what to do. The girls called Lewis, Will and Zane and explained their plan. The boys agreed that this was something they definitely had to do. So that day, the girls swam all the way to Fiji, explored some parts of the island and went back home that evening.  
It was their way of saying goodbye and they thought they had done it pretty well.

_**Rikki's POV**_

I knew it. (Am I a good or what? Hey, you can't blame me for bragging: I'm still me!)  
I knew they'd be okay. They're okay because they have each other.  
We've always been protected by the magic: the magic of mermaids and the magic of friendship and love. THAT is what has made us strong enough to keep our secret. That is what has made us strong enough to pull through, no matter what. Not even Denman, Charlotte or Sophie could break us apart.  
And that is what them ALWAYS will keep together, to pull through. Not even this, could break them apart.

Oh, and before I forget: thanks dad, for living my dream.  
And thank you guys: for the best goodbye-party you could ever give me. Thank you for loving me and missing me. Thank you for supporting my dad and to help him with my funeral. Thank you for swimming to Fiji. And thank you for all those other things you've ever did for me and that I now forget to mention.

I wish you all the best. That you all may find love and friendship. That you all may live long, happy and healthy. That you all just may stay the way you are: true friends.  
Hallo and Goodbye. To you all.

- The End –

AN: So this was my story. I hope you enjoyed it. If you liked it review, please. Maybe then (if I have time, because I'm gonna go to college soon) I'll keep writing. If you think there were too many language errors in the story and you think I should use a Beta Reader, tell me also!  
Bye. – x –


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